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You - Laserscape CD (album) cover

LASERSCAPE

You

Progressive Electronic


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Modrigue
PROG REVIEWER
2 stars 2.5 stars

The second half of the 80's were definitely not the best for German electronic artists. Most of them turned towards new-age or ambient, not always successfully. And what about YOU? Well, "Laserscape" is an unequal mixture of ambient music with reminiscences of the Berlin school approach and a touch of new-age. There are only a few moments with heavy-psych pulsating sequences and upbeats typical of the band.

The tracks were in fact recorded in 1985 as a soundtrack for German designer Horst H. Baumann's open-air laser performances.

The opener "Passing Landscapes" sets the tone by displaying an aerial intriguing atmosphere. "Can You Tell Me Where I Am" is clearly the best track of the record, as it's the one that most resembles YOU's previous material. Consisting in a quick sequence and cool drums over a melancholic soft synthesizer melody, this passage is quite nice and catchy. Back to ambient with "Changing Rooms", the longest composition of the disc. Apart from bizarre sounds and slight oriental sonorities, nothing really happens in 13 minutes.

"Travelling Hologram" incorporates various string instruments. Original but not featuring many changes, this threatening piece sounds more like a thriller movie soundtrack. The surprising "Scanned Noises" is in fact not especially noisy. Its pretty delicate acoustic guitar play contrasts with the menacing electronic mood. Interesting. Not much to say about the anecdotal repetitive "Curious Phenomena Part I". Part II concludes the record with long mysterious synthesizer textures.

The 21 minutes bonus track "Laserscape/Live" is a recording of the Philips Laserscape Krefeld show on August 31st, 1985, that was broadcasted by Berlin's SFB radio station.

YOU went adventurous and experimental for this 1986 album. It has its moments, but the music is definitely not the trippy style of "Electric Day" or "Time-Code". However, the German duo avoided the cheesy new-age temptation, which is a good point. "Laserscape" was conceived as a soundtrack, so it may require to be heard with the corresponding laser shows to be fully appreciated.

If you're into ambient electronic music with experimentations, you can give it a try.

Report this review (#1557901)
Posted Sunday, May 1, 2016 | Review Permalink
Progfan97402
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Laserscape by this German electronic combo YOU really took me by surprise. Mainly because it came out in 1986, certainly not a favorite time period, musically, for me (OK so I was 13-14 at the time, and definitely wasn't interested in what was popular at the time like hair metal and synth pop). Tangerine Dream's Underwater Sunlight from the same time I felt was pretty mediocre. Laserscape is much better! This is how I felt electronic music should have went in the '80s. By 1986 it was clear electronic music had either went synth pop or New Age. YOU refused to go that way. Here they use lot of digital synths and samplers, but what's shocking is they use Mellotron on this album and puts it to good use here! It's really difficult to find recordings from the mid 1980s using the tron because everyone preferred the convenience of digital synths, which were widely available by '86. They even use sequencers which Tangerine Dream had abandoned by this time. What I love is they often conjure up an eerie and ominous atmosphere, something that Tangerine Dream lost by this point (to be honest, Underwater Sunlight sounds pretty harmless, that's why I'm not a fan of it). I'm usually not a fan of how many artists in the '80s were using digital sampling, but these guys take a rather interesting and creative use of it. The cover makes it look like you're getting another typical sterile, soulless '80s type of album, but I'm happy to say that's not what you get here. Quality control really went awry in the '80s, so obviously I didn't have high expectations with Laserscape. I was expecting an Underwater Sunlight type of album, and instead got something much better and pleasing, the way I felt 1980s electronic music should have been like. Plus the presences of Mellotron sure helps! I am generally not a fan of digital sounds, but this group did it in a way to make it sound very appealing. This album actually comes recommended by me.
Report this review (#1740196)
Posted Saturday, July 1, 2017 | Review Permalink

YOU Laserscape ratings only


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  • 2 stars Basileus
  • 3 stars Trabbi (Francise)
  • 2 stars Gordy (Endless, Nameless) SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Folk/Eclectic/PSIKE/Metal Teams

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